Skip to main content

The Sunday Salon


Ah, yes, another Sunday. Hard to believe it’s November already. I was a little thrown off by the clocks changing this morning. Yesterday I went out to lunch with my mom, sister (who’s in town for the weekend) and grandmother. I bought a new handbag at the mall, and spent most of the afternoon reading.

Currently I’m 700 pages in to Edward Rutherfurd’s new book, New York: The Novel (coming out next week). Like his other books, it’s absolutely mammoth-sized (860 pages), but enjoyable. He only covers New York history since 1664, so there’s much more room for character development. He skips out on a lot of events in New York City’s history, but what he does cover, he covers very well. It’s taken a while to get through; I started reading it on Monday. My review will be up on the 19th, when it comes out.

Also finished this week was Barbara Kingsolver’s new book, which is EXCELLENT, by the way. Not to be missed, and probably one of the best books I’ve read all year. My review of this exceptionally complicated novel will be up on Tuesday. How was your reading week?
Labels:

Comments

A Bookshelf Monstrosity said…
I was curious about New York when I first read about it, but kind of intimidated by its length. I'm looking forward to your review :)
November 1, 2009 at 3:25 PM
Wendy said…
I can't wait to read your review of Kingsolver's latest!
November 1, 2009 at 3:31 PM
Judy Krueger said…
I spent the week reading Margaret George's Autobiography of Henry VIII; 932 pages and mostly a page turner. I read it as background and preparation for Wolf Hall, which I started last night. Am I glad I did the homework or I would be so lost. Also, since The Autobiography... is from Henry's point of view, reading Wolf Hall is an experience in the other side of the story, ie, Thomas Cromwell and Cardinal Wolsey. Having fun!
November 1, 2009 at 5:12 PM
Kathleen said…
I look forward to your review of Lacuna. I really enjoyed The Poisonwood Bible.
November 1, 2009 at 9:45 PM
Amanda said…
Oh I'm completely jealous of your two reads. Can't wait for your reviews!
November 2, 2009 at 10:26 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Another giveaway

This time, the publicist at WW Norton sent me two copies of The Glass of Time , by Michael Cox--so I'm giving away the second copy. Cox is the author of The Meaning of Night, and this book is the follow-up to that. Leave a comment here to enter to win it! The deadline is next Sunday, 10/5/08.
194 comments
Read more

A giveaway winner, and another giveaway

The winner of the Girl in a Blue Dress contest is... Anna, of Diary of An Eccentric ! My new contest is for a copy of The Shape of Mercy , by Susan Meissner. According to Publisher's Weekly : Meissner's newest novel is potentially life-changing, the kind of inspirational fiction that prompts readers to call up old friends, lost loves or fallen-away family members to tell them that all is forgiven and that life is too short for holding grudges. Achingly romantic, the novel features the legacy of Mercy Hayworth—a young woman convicted during the Salem witch trials—whose words reach out from the past to forever transform the lives of two present-day women. These book lovers—Abigail Boyles, elderly, bitter and frail, and Lauren Lars Durough, wealthy, earnest and young—become unlikely friends, drawn together over the untimely death of Mercy, whose precious diary is all that remains of her too short life. And what a diary! Mercy's words not only beguile but help Abigail and Lars...
115 comments
Read more

Review: Mariana, by Monica Dickens

Mariana is the story of one young girl’s growth towards adulthood during the 1920s and ‘30s. The book begins when Mary Shannon is eight, and traveling with her somewhat flighty mother to Charbury, her grandparents’ house; and continues up through the time that Mary is twenty-four and waiting to hear news of her husband from the war. Monica Dickens (a great-granddaughter of Charles) depicts Mary’s maturation to adulthood with perfection. The reader sympathizes with Mary as she experiences the ups and downs of relationships and careers—experimenting with both seems to be pretty characteristic of Mary, as she grapples a bit with identity and independence. And yet, there isn’t the usual amount of teenage angst that one usually finds in a novel about growing up, which I found to be very refreshing. Mary is a sweet and sometimes naïve girl, but at the same time, she’s also wonderfully sarcastic towards her peers. She’s hard to like at times, but in an odd way, I found myself sympathizing wi...
2 comments
Read more